


Loveless in an Elevator

by rabid_plotbunny



Category: Compilation of Final Fantasy VII, Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII, Final Fantasy VII
Genre: Bored Genesis in a confined space, M/M, More Innuendo than you can shake a stick at
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-09
Updated: 2019-02-09
Packaged: 2019-10-25 03:36:50
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,205
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17717309
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rabid_plotbunny/pseuds/rabid_plotbunny
Summary: When the elevator screeched its way to an unanticipated halt between floors high up in the Shinra building, trapping the three Firsts inside it, Sephiroth's agile mind was instantly trying to figure out just how much trouble they were in for.





	Loveless in an Elevator

**Author's Note:**

> Originally posted to IJ/LJ 12-23-2008

He'd once heard someone say that trouble comes in threes. 

So when the elevator screeched its way to an unanticipated halt between floors high up in the Shinra building, trapping the three Firsts inside it, Sephiroth's agile mind was instantly trying to figure out just how much trouble they were in for. Were there going to be two more incidents before things cleared up, or was that three incidents _per person_ and there were eight left? Or maybe six, if the stopped elevator counted once for each of them...?

As soon as they were sure that the elevator had stopped completely and that no amount of random button-pushing was going to get it working again, Genesis whipped out his phone and dialed maintenance. By the time his call had ended Genesis was anything _but_ calm, practically sparking in irritation.

"They'll send someone up to look at the elevator when they get the time, they said," he growled, glaring at his phone as if it was at fault. "When they get time! I told them we were stuck in here and they'll send someone _when they have time?!_ " 

He was clearly furious, and both of his companions could understand why, being not exactly thrilled themselves. It would be different if the elevator had been empty, but a response like that when there was not just one but _three_ high-ranking SOLDIER officers trapped in it was inexcusable.

***

Half an hour had passed. Half an hour in which there was no sign of anyone showing up to do even a preliminary check on the situation. They'd long since given up on standing there and sank down to sit on the floor, sitting there in silence.

It was driving Genesis nuts.

So he did what he always did when he got bored. Well, in public, anyway. He reached into an inside pocket and pulled out his favorite copy of Loveless, then flipped through the pages to his favorite section. Opened his mouth and-

"Not more _Loveless_ , Genesis," Sephiroth said with a sigh. He'd heard more than enough quotes from that damned poem to last him his entire life.

The redhead glared. " _Loveless_ is the best epic poem of all time!" he protested.

"Well, _you_ certainly seem to think so," Sephiroth agreed. "It doesn't change the fact that I, for one, am quite thoroughly sick of hearing it every time you open your mouth."

The glare deepened, but Genesis put the book away. "Fine then. No _Loveless_. So what does the uncultured barbarian want to do to pass the time?"

One silver brow cocked. "I _was_ meditating, and reviewing battle tactics as documented by Wutaian strategist-"

"All work and no play makes Sephiroth a dull boy," Genesis quipped.

"Fine," said the man in question. "What do _you_ want to do, then? _Besides_ inflicting more _Loveless_ on us."

"Inflicting? _Inflicting?!_ You-!"

"Genesis." It was Angeal, his voice calm and sensible as always.

It always amazed people how Angeal, drab, boring Angeal, could calm Genesis down from most of his rages with but a single word.

Genesis sighed. "Fine. So, if I'm not allowed to share the brilliance that is _Loveless_ , I suppose we'll have to do something else while the maintenance crews decide whether or not we're worth coming up here for." He went quiet, thinking. After a little while, his face lit up with a quickly-growing grin. "Oh, I know! Let's play 'Secrets'!"

Those who had seen Angeal before and knew how very little could upset him would have been astonished by the look of wide-eyed alarm that appeared on his face at Genesis' declaration.

Sephiroth saw the reaction, but didn't really know what to think about it so pushed it to the back of his mind to think about at a later date. "'Secrets'?" he asked. It was no tactical game _he'd_ ever heard of.

The redhead nodded, blue eyes alight. "Yes. We take turns asking questions, and everyone has to answer them truthfully. But it can't be about stuff that everyone knows. It has to be-"

"Secrets," Sephiroth finished. He thought it over briefly, but couldn't see the harm in it. He'd never really been allowed secrets; his every move recorded and documented for most of his life, but it sounded like an amusing way to pass the time if nothing else. He shrugged. "Why not?"

Genesis' grin widened, then blue eyes slid toward the brunet. "You're playing, too, Angeal!" he said.

"Genesis, I-"

"I'll start!" the redhead declared. He thought for a moment, crossing his long legs and leaning forward in anticipation. Then his expression brightened, even as it took on an evilly mischievous cast. "So... What was your first time like?" he asked at last, sounding surprisingly like a teenage girl at a slumber party.

Angeal went beet red, but Sephiroth only looked puzzled. "First time?" he asked.

"Yeah, you know, your first time. With someone, not just your hand," Genesis clarified, delighting in the way Angeal buried his face in one big hand, even his ears turning red now. "I remember mine! It was shortly before we left for Midgar, and it was the man who took care of our chocobos, not that we ever rode them. He taught _me_ a thing or two about riding, let me tell _you-!_ "

"I like Chocobos," Sephiroth agreed. 

He looked up, puzzled, as both Genesis and Angeal made strangled noises, and found them trying not to stare at him, the oddest expressions on their faces. With his admittedly limited people skills, he couldn't puzzle out the meaning of the look, but he knew it was one he'd never seen before.

"Wow," Genesis said at last, voice still somewhat strangled though most of the red had finally left his face. "Go, _Sephiroth!_ You're a lot more adventurous than I thought you were."

Sephiroth shrugged one shoulder in a surprisingly shy move. "I like them," he said simply. "There's just something about the feel of that much muscle and feathers surging between your legs, coupled with the sheer _power_ of the bird...."

That expression was back. 

Angeal coughed, gave his head a hard shake. "Ah. Um. Please, spare me the intimate details. I'm not sure I even want to _know_ how that works."

The frown was back. "Why not? I'm sure once you tried it there would be no going back. You'd love it, I just know it."

"I'll pass, thanks anyway," Angeal squeaked, turning red enough to match Genesis' coat. Or the redhead's _face_ , for that matter. Whatever calm Genesis had managed to pull together was long gone at Sephiroth's words.

"All right," Genesis said at last, red-faced and still seeming to have a little trouble breathing. "So that was my first time. Angeal? You're next."

"My first," Angeal mused. "Genesis, do you remember that Second when we first arrived in Midgar? The blond?"

"Not the one with the twitchy eye?"

"No, the other one. The one that gave us directions."

"Oh, him. Yes."

"Well, we kept in touch for a while after that. It was just after we'd made Third; we went up to the roof of the SOLDIER building to celebrate."

"Was he any good?"

"I saw stars."

"Hmmm," Genesis said, grinning. Angeal had been keeping secrets; he'd never even suspected that was where his friend had disappeared to that night!

The frown was back as Sephiroth thought that over. "How could you possibly have seen the stars from there? The pollution over Midgar clouds the sky and you cannot see stars until you're at least a few miles out of the city," he wondered aloud.

Genesis and Angeal shared a look, then stared at their silver-haired friend, sitting on the floor, legs bent up, arms wrapped around them. Sitting like that, it was surprisingly easy to forget that he was one of the most powerful men in the world, that he was Shinra's SOLDIER-General and the Demon of Wutai.

"Ah, Sephiroth, you _do_ know what we're talking about, right?" Angeal queried.

Puzzled blue-green eyes rose to meet their gazes. "Not really. Genesis asked about first times, then he was talking about riding and you were talking about impossible astronomy."

"...I'll take that as a no," Angeal said after a long moment of disbelief. Beside him, Genesis' smirk was back, and more mischievous than ever. "Genesis," he said warningly.

Genesis ignored him. He unfolded his long legs, then crawled closer to Sephiroth. Lifting one red-gloved hand, he reached out and did something he'd been suppressing for almost as long as he'd known the other man. He took up a lock of that silver hair and ran it through his fingers, then rubbed the end over his chin. It was surprisingly soft, and up close he could see that it had an almost opalescent sheen to it. "Tell me, Sephiroth," he almost purred, "what was _your_ first time like?"

"First time doing _what?_ " Sephiroth asked at last. "I've had lots of first times. The first time I was given a real sword, the first time I used the Masamune, the first time I commanded troops, the first time I put rat poison in Hojo's coffee-"

"The first time first time," Genesis said. He sighed as Sephiroth didn't seem to clue in, decided to be a bit more blunt. "The first time you slept with someone." And, to make sure he wasn't about to be treated to some tale about chastely bunking with someone for some reason, he clarified. "How did you lose your virginity?"

Sephiroth only blinked. "My what? I lost something? Should I file a Lost Item report...?"

Now Angeal and Genesis could not help staring. They had _not_ heard what they thought they had heard. But, glancing at each other, they knew they had.

"Umm, Sephiroth," Genesis began awkwardly. He tried to think of a way to explain it, then settled for the easy way out. "Angeal has something to explain to you."

"Gee, thanks," Angeal groused. Then he met curious blue-green eyes and sighed. He'd never in his wildest dreams thought that he'd have to explain the birds and the bees to his silver-haired friend. Then again, maybe he didn't have to. He knew that the other man was very intelligent and extremely well schooled. He also knew that he had the social skills of an amoeba. It could be that Sephiroth knew what they were talking about, but just didn't associate the slang with the act in question. Still. "Umm, you were taught about human biology, right?" he asked.

One silver brow cocked at the seemingly unrelated question. "Yes. Being raised as I was, I could hardly avoid it."

"And... reproductive biology?"

"You mean how males and females combine their genetic material in order to create offspring? Yes."

"Ahhh, yes. And do you know about _how_ they do that?"

"You mean the act itself? ...Yes." Sephiroth shuddered. "There were... videos. A ‘Jessie from Junon’, I believe.”

“You actually saw the _Jessie_ videos?” Genesis cut in, eyes wide in surprise. “Did you see the one with the-”

“Genesis.” That was Angeal, voice a little exasperated at having that awkward conversation interrupted and prolonged just _that_ much more.

“Oh. Right. Sorry.” Contrary to his words, Genesis didn’t look or sound the least bit sorry.

“Hmph,” Angeal snorted. He turned back to Sephiroth. "All right. And you know that that act can also be done between males?"

The frown was back. "That would be pointless. It is biologically impossible for two males to create offspring."

"That's not the only reason you do it. I mean, look at you and the... Chocobo."

Sephiroth blinked. "I hardly see what one has to do with the other."

Genesis rolled his eyes. "What Angeal is trying to say is that, well... Remember how you felt having sex with the Chocobo? It's not just about reproduction, it's also about pleasure." He grinned, pleased with his attempt at an explanation. The expression faded and was replaced with confusion, however when he caught sight of Sephiroth's face. "Sephiroth?"

For a long moment, Sephiroth could only stare, wide-eyed, mouth opening and closing soundlessly. Then he shook himself and glared. "I did not have sex with a Chocobo!" he hissed in embarrassed mortification, cheeks pinking up.

Genesis blinked, barely registering Angeal's sigh of relief from the side. "You didn't? But you said... The muscles and the between the legs and the surging...."

"Yes. I enjoy riding Chocobos. They're much better than transports. They come when called, they can cross multiple types of terrain, and are not confined to roads. "

"...Oh."

"I can't believe you thought I would... That I... It's not even physically compatible!"

A snicker. "What, you _checked?_ "

"Genesis-" the tone was threat, plain and simple.

"All right, all right. I'll let it go. For now. But you do know what we're talking about now, right?"

"...Sort of."

Angeal sighed and, in an effort to spare Sephiroth any more of Genesis' convoluted explanations, decided that in this case blunt was best. "First times," he said. "As in the first time you had sex. With a partner."

The pink on Sephiroth's cheeks turned to a hard blush so fast that for a moment his two companions feared the sudden rush of blood might make him keel over in a dead faint. Even his _ears_ turned red, along with an impressive portion of his bared chest. "W-what...?" he barely managed to squeak out with an uncharacteristic stutter in a tone much higher than his usual baritone.

"Aww, come on, Sephiroth!" Genesis cajoled. "It's all right. It's just us, and we won't tell anyone. Besides, we already told you ours. No need to be embarrassed!" He was surprised, though, at the way Sephiroth was acting. That level of embarrassment at the mere mention of something he already knew was actually sort of cute, but...

...Wait.

Genesis slowly brought his gaze up to meet the still-blushing Sephiroth's. "You... You _did_ have a first time, right?" he couldn't help but ask.

Angeal snorted. "He's just about as old as we are, Genesis," he said. "Of course he has."

Angeal, having expected the silver-haired General to chime in in agreement, was left hanging. He turned his gaze to Sephiroth, eyes slowly widening as realization set in.

Sephiroth said nothing, kept his gaze focused on his knees.

"Holy shit," was all that Genesis said.

For a long moment they just sat there.

Sephiroth fidgeted. Eventually, he lifted his head, face still a match for Genesis' coat, and defiantly met their eyes. Still, he said nothing.

"So..." Again, it was the fiery redhead that broke the silence. "Do you want to?"

Blue-green eyes blinked. "...What?"

"Do you want to?" Genesis repeated. "I mean, I wouldn't mind. Angeal, would you mind?"

"I... wouldn't mind," Angeal said. He glanced around. "I'd _prefer_ somewhere other than here, though."

"See?" Genesis said. "So. Do you want to?"

"Do I want to have sex?"

"Yes."

"In the elevator."

"Yes."

"With you and Angeal."

"Oooh, yes."

"You're insane."

"Ah, come on, Seph! Live a little!" Genesis said. He moved to plop down beside Sephiroth, leaning chastely up against his side. "Didn't you ever think about it? Wonder what it would be like?"

Hesitation. Then "...Maybe," Sephiroth quietly admitted.

"Well, then? You know us. What's holding you back? Really."

"The fact that the maintenance crews could show up at any time, for one," Sephiroth said drily.

"That's a good point," Genesis conceded. He took his phone out of his pocket, re-dialed Maintenance. He waited while it rang. And rang. And rang some more. When it was finally picked up, he spoke. "This is SOLDIER-First Genesis. When is a maintenance crew going to come fix the elevator? ...Oh, _really?_ I don't think you want to- ...No, _you_ listen! You will send a crew- Hello? _Hello?_ " He glared as he punched a button on the phone with more force than was probably necessary, then closed it and slipped it back into place. "They hung up on me. I can't _believe_ they hung up on me!"

"So what did they say?" It was Angeal.

Genesis scowled. "And I quote: 'It's the weekend and the game's on. We'll get to it when we get to it.' End quote. Bastards. You could hear the entire lot of them betting and partying in the background."

Sephiroth frowned. "That is hardly regulation behavior. I'll have to file a report about this."

"Forget reports," Genesis growled, "I'm putting in a complaint! We've already been here for a little over an hour!"

"I agree," Angeal said. "Perhaps we should file reports _and_ complaints. That might get faster results."

"Hmmm," Sephiroth agreed. "Yes. Reports and complaints, and I do believe I'm feeling the need to show up down in Maintenance tomorrow to _personally_ express my displeasure."

"Oooh, that's _good!_ " Genesis said, brightening. "Count me in!"

That settled, they fell back into quiet.

And once again, it was Genesis that broke first. 

"So... the crew aren't going to be showing up any time soon. Anything else holding you back?"

Sephiroth sighed. "You're still on about that?" he asked. Another sigh. "Fine. I do not have anything against trying what you ask. The... sex thing... with you and Angeal. _But_ I am _not_ going to even be considering doing it in the elevator. Three of the walls are glass, for Gaia's sake! All of Midgar could see!"

"You know, for some that would be a big turn on."

An incredulous look. "Not for me. No."

"Right, then." Genesis stood abruptly, then turned his gaze to the ceiling. It didn’t take him long to find what he was looking for. “Angeal, come give me a boost,” he said.

With a sigh, Angeal stood, went over to where Genesis stood, and laced his fingers together.

Genesis put one boot on the makeshift step then reached up to the ceiling, pushing one of the tiles out of the way, giving them a view of the elevator tracks up the side of the building. Fortunately, the whole thing was enclosed in a tube of the same glass they used to make containment units, strong and SOLDIER-proof, so they weren’t buffeted by the polluted winds that never stopped that high up. He grabbed hold of the lip of the opening then pulled himself up onto the elevator roof.

Back down in the elevator itself, the other two could hear his footsteps from up above as he examined the mechanism. Then his head popped back into sight in the opening.

“You might as well come up,” he said. “Even if the crew got here right now, it’s a mess. It would take hours to fix, at the very least; the track got warped somehow, and now everything’s jammed and twisted. The doors to the next floor aren’t that far away; let’s climb it.”

It didn’t take the other two long do make up their minds. A bit of climbing in an enclosed outside elevator shaft roughly fifty floors up, or staying in the elevator itself until the maintenance crew finished watching the game, sobered up, and actually got up there and fixed the problem?

Sephiroth gave Angeal a boost, then climbed out himself.

***

_This_ , he decided as he scrubbed at a stubborn spot on the floor, _was_ not _what I signed up for._

Well, to be perfectly honest, _none_ of it was what he signed up for. He’d come all the way to Midgar to be a SOLDIER, a hero like the Three Generals, not a cadet assigned to floor-cleaning duty because the sergeant didn’t have a sense of humor. He couldn’t _wait_ for the SOLDIER exams, couldn’t wait to show them what he could do, couldn’t wait to get out of the regulars and into the SOLDIER program, even if it _was_ going to be pretty much the same thing as he was doing now until he made Third.

He was determined, though. He’d make Third. And Second. _And_ First. Nothing was going to hold him back! Maybe he’d even get to chum around with the _Generals…!_

But that wouldn’t be for a while yet, and he still had the rest of the floor to wash up to his sergeant’s satisfaction before he could call it a day.

He dipped the brush back into the bucket then started scrubbing with renewed determination, pulling the bucket along with him as he made his way down the hallway, his regulation pants soaking from the knees down, his boots squeaking slightly as they dragged over the freshly-cleaned surface.

He’d almost made it to the elevator doors when he paused. He looked up, looking first one way then the other as he tried to pinpoint where that noise was coming from and what it was. Were there actually _mice_ in the Shinra building? He hadn’t seen or heard any at all since he’d signed up and had sort of figured that there weren’t any in Midgar. Not top-plate, anyway.

There was another soft scraping sound, followed by an almost metallic clanking.

Scratch that; it was _definitely_ metal-on-metal, accompanied by that scraping sound.

…Did top-plate Midgar mice have metal teeth and claws? And judging by the volume, those were some _huge_ suckers!

They were also not six feet away, right on the other side of the closed elevator doors.

Suddenly, he wished he was armed with a better weapon than a bucket of now-dingy soapy water and a stiff floor-brush.

There was more scraping, then the elevator doors parted, just a little.

… _Smart_ giant top-plate Midgar mice with metal teeth and claws…?

The elevator doors opened a little wider, then two sets of gloved fingers appeared in the crack; one black-clad, one red. They each grabbed on to one of the panels, then pulled. Under their urging, the elevator doors slowly slid open about halfway with a soft hiss of hydraulics.

Kneeling on the floor beside his bucket, soapy floor-brush held defensively before him, he watched in wide-eyed shock as first Sephiroth, then Genesis, then Angeal climbed up and out of the empty elevator shaft. They paused there for a minute, dusting themselves off even though he couldn’t see so much as a speck of dust that had thought itself good enough to land on them, before they noticed him. As soon as they did, though, his training kicked in at least enough to momentarily overcome his surprise and he snapped to attention, making as good a salute as he could while kneeling on the wet floor, only noticing after he almost bashed himself over the head that the brush was in his saluting hand. “Sirs!”

_Wow. Now_ that’s _a first impression to be proud of,_ a somewhat-cynical part of his mind quipped.

Oddly enough, it actually might have been; Genesis and Angeal looked outright amused and was that the faintest hint of a smirk on the Ice General’s face? _Wow!_

“As you were, cadet.” That was Angeal… Ah, SOLDIER-First Hewley. He smiled openly at the flustered boy, eyes warm and friendly. Apparently the rumors about him being the most approachable of the three were being proven right.

He relaxed slightly, but only slightly. At least the brush wasn’t dripping water down his arm anymore as he quickly lowered it. He watched as they looked to each other, apparently coming to a silent understanding since they all turned almost simultaneously to head off in the same direction. Before they had gotten too far, though, his mouth got the better of him once again. “Sirs?” he called. They paused, turning back to face him, and he swallowed against the sudden realization that he had just delayed the three highest-ranked people in the SOLDIER program… no, in the entire Shinra _army_. “Uh… Why did you… the elevator… climb… why?”

Great. Now they were going to think he was an idiot.

But once again they took no offense and it was the fiery Genesis that answered with a smirk. “Only _average_ SOLDIERs ride _in_ the elevators,” he said with an airy wave of one hand. “If you want to be _really_ good, you climb.”

“…Oh.”

He was still staring blankly ahead as they disappeared around the corner. The sound of the stairwell door closing roused him from his stupor and he stood. He walked over to the still-partially-opened elevator doors and looked down into the shaft. Hmmm. Not much to hold on to in there, just the stereotypical thin metal ladder that _always_ fell apart in the movies. At least the shaft itself was lit, if only by those dim access lights.

“If you want to be really good, you climb,” he repeated to himself under his breath. He looked a little further into the elevator shaft, then did a double-take as he realized he could see the lights of Midgar through the glass walls and backed away quickly. Heights had never bothered him, but this _was_ fifty-odd floors up. Then he swallowed stubbornly and crept back to the doors, fingers white-knuckled as he gripped the slowly-drying brush.

He was determined, and ten times more stubborn than he was determined.

He, Cadet Zack Fair, was going to make it into SOLDIER. He was going to get to the top. And he was going to be _really_ good.

Though maybe he’d start with the _stairs._

**END**


End file.
